Unholy War raised important issues

Seumas Milne, in his criticisms of the Dispatches films Unholy War and Undercover Mosque (
Comment, September 20), asserts that Undercover Mosque was "found" to have "distorted" what some of the contributors said. That is simply not true. These extraordinary claims, made by the West Midlands police and the Crown Prosecution Service, are vigorously contested by Channel 4. The claims are being considered by Ofcom and I am confident the regulator's inquiries will vindicate the programme, which has been widely recognised as an important piece of investigative journalism by many commentators, including some writing for the Guardian.

Unholy War was an equally considered investigation which revealed that some British Muslims converting to Christianity are facing unacceptable levels of intimidation and violence for leaving their faith. The number of those attacked is not "tiny" - it is estimated that there are around 3,000 Muslims who have converted to Christianity in Britain. Nor was the subject dealt with in a sensationalist manner; it is difficult to see how you can overstate a story in which victims describe being physically attacked and receiving death threats for choosing a new faith. There are clearly significant sensitivities over the issues raised by these films and we gave careful consideration to everything we broadcast. Providing our audience with an increased understanding of these issues is the act of a responsible public-service broadcaster.Kevin Sutcliffe Editor, Dispatches